← Home
The Poetic Edda: Hovamol · 12 of 16 · tr. Henry Adams Bellows

Section 1l

| and hear thou my rede,- Profit thou hast if thou hearest, Great thy gain if thou learnest: I bid thee be wary, | but be not fearful; (Beware most with ale or another's wife, And third beware | lest a thief outwit thee.) [129. Line 5 is apparently interpolated. 131. Lines 5-6 probably were inserted from a different poem.] p. 58 132. I rede thee, Loddfafnir! | and hear thou my rede,- Profit thou hast if thou hearest, Great thy gain if thou learnest: Scorn or mocking | ne'er shalt thou make Of a guest or a journey-goer. 133. Oft scarcely he knows | who sits in the house What kind is the man who comes; None so good is found | that faults he has not, Nor so wicked that nought he is worth. 134. I rede thee, Loddfafnir! | and hear thou my rede,-- Profit thou hast if thou hearest, Great thy gain if thou learnest: Scorn not ever | the gray-haired singer, Oft do the old speak good; (Oft from shrivelled skin | come skillful counsels, Though it hang with the hides, And flap with the pelts, And is blown with the bellies.) [133. Many editors reject the last two lines of this stanza as spurious, putting the first two lines at the end of the preceding stanza. Others, attaching lines 3 and 4 to stanza 132, insert as the first two lines of stanza 133 two lines from a late paper manuscript, running: "Evil and good | do men's sons ever "Mingled bear in their breasts." 134. Presumably the last four lines have been added to this stanza, for the parallelism in the last three makes it probable that they belong together. The wrinkled skin of the old man is [fp. 59] compared with the dried skins and bellies of animals kept for various purposes hanging in an Icelandic house.] p. 59 135. I rede thee, Loddfafnir! | and hear thou my rede,-- Profit thou hast if thou hearest, Great thy gain if thou learnest: Curse not thy guest, | nor show him thy gate, Deal well with a man in want. 136. Strong is the beam | that raised must be To give an entrance to all; Give it a ring, | or grim will be The wish it would work on thee. 137. I rede thee, Loddfafnir! | and hear thou my rede,-- Profit thou hast if thou hearest, Great thy gain if thou learnest: When ale thou drinkest) | seek might of earth, (For earth cures drink, | and fire cures ills, The oak cures tightness, | the ear cures magic, Rye cures rupture, | the moon cures rage, Grass cures the scab, | and runes the sword-cut;) The field absorbs the flood. [136. This stanza suggests the dangers of too much hospitality. The beam (bolt) which is ever being raised to admit guests be comes weak thereby. It needs a ring to help it in keeping the door closed, and without the ability at times to ward off guests a man becomes the victim of his own generosity. 137. The list of "household remedies" in this stanza is doubtless interpolated. Their nature needs no comment here.] p. 60 138. Now are Hor's words | spoken in the hall, Kind for the kindred of men, Cursed for the kindred of giants: Hail to the speaker, | and to him who learns! Profit be his who has them! Hail to them who hearken! * * * 139.
Themes
◆Animismcosmology

The doctrine and worldview that natural phenomena, places, and objects possess inherent spirit, soul, or personality — and that the cosmos is populated by countless local, plural, embodied divine agents: kami in mountain and tree, sidhe in cairn and well, landwights in field and stone, nymphs in spring and grove, haltija in forest and lake, lares and penates in household and threshold, Iamblichean daemons in element and place. Distinct from monotheism (single transcendent God), pantheism (one underlying substance), and emanation_hierarchy (cascading single source); animism's signature is the plurality, locality, and embodied-in-landscape character of the divine.

Natural elements like earth, fire, and oak are described as possessing inherent agency to cure human ailments.

All passages →
◆Cosmic Dualismtheology

Ontological opposition between two primal principles (light/darkness, truth/lie, spirit/matter) as the fundamental structure of reality.

The final stanza distinguishes between the kindred of men (beneficiaries) and giants (cursed), reflecting a cosmic opposition.

All passages →
◆Cosmic Sympathycosmology

The Stoic and Plotinian doctrine that all parts of the cosmos are bound by hidden affinities, so that a movement in one part resonates through the whole; the metaphysical basis for astrology, magic, and divination.

The list of remedies implies a sympathetic connection between natural elements and specific human conditions.

All passages →
◆Living Godtheology

The divine conceived as active, present, and dynamic—not an abstract principle but a personal responsive reality.

The passage is presented as direct speech from a deity (Hor/Odin) offering counsel to humanity.

All passages →
◆Love Of Neighbourethics

Active compassionate care for others as a central spiritual obligation or expression of divine love.

The text explicitly commands kindness to guests and those in want, framing hospitality as a central moral duty.

All passages →
◆Paradox As Teachingethics

Using apparent contradiction, reversal, or riddle to destabilise ordinary understanding and induce insight.

The advice to be wary but not fearful presents a balanced, paradoxical instruction on conduct.

All passages →
◆Sacred Namestheology

Divine names or formulas that carry ontological power, used in prayer, liturgy, or magical practice.

Runes are invoked as possessing power to heal wounds, functioning as sacred formulas or names.

All passages →
◆Self Examinationpraxis

Daily review of thought and action as spiritual practice.

Stanza 133 advises recognizing that no man is without fault, encouraging humility and self-awareness.

All passages →
◆Word Power Incantationpraxis

The doctrine and practice that spoken or sung word carries causal-magical force — that uttering names, formulas, songs, or incantations alters reality directly rather than merely communicating about it. Vainamoinen's runo-songs that move mountains and command iron, Norse galdr, Vedic mantra, Shinto kotodama, the magician's barbarous names in the Greek Magical Papyri, Iamblichean arcane signatures and inexplicable symbols, biblical creation-by-word. Distinct from sacred_names (the ontological power of names themselves) and prayer (address to the divine); word_power_incantation is the magical-causal efficacy of the spoken word as such.

Stanza 137 attributes curative power to runes, illustrating the magical efficacy of written or spoken symbols to alter reality.

All passages →
Related passages · 1 parallel
◆egyptian|The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani)|Chapter 38 (part 1)
“PLATE XXXII. (34) "Hail, Tmu in thine hour, who comest forth from Tattu, I have never cursed the king." (35) "Hail, thou who workest with thy will, who comest forth from Tebu, I have never fouled the water." (36) "Hail, thou bearer of the…”
Both passages emphasize moral and ethical behavior, with a focus on not harming others and respecting societal norms. The Poetic Edda provides practical advice on hospitality and respect, while the Egyptian Negative Confession lists declarations of innocence and moral purity. Both texts serve as guides for virtuous living within their respective traditions.